Perpignan’s Town Hall

Just look at this glowing façade — built from cayrou brick, local marble from Baixas, and smooth river stones. For a quintessential example of Perpignan’s traditional Roussillon-style architecture, look no further. Look up and you’ll see three bronze arms set side by side in the façade. They carry a powerful meaning, one that takes us back to the very origins of this place. In 1197, King Peter II of Aragon signed a charter making Perpignan a Consular City — the first in the entire Catalan-Aragonese region. In short, five consuls were appointed to serve terms of at least one year and were responsible for running the city, dispensing municipal justice, and protecting both its defense and the freedoms of its people. These representatives were elected by the male population, which at the time was divided into three main social groups depicted here by the three bronze arms on the wall. The largest hand, at the center, stands for the wealthy merchants. The middle one, on the right, represents the professional class — doctors, lawyers, cloth finishers, and apothecaries, and the smallest hand, ont he left, symbolizes the working class — gardeners, labourers, artisans, and farmers. To host the meetings of the consuls, a first building was constructed on Place de la Loge in 1318 — it corresponds to what is now the entrance hall of today’s Town Hall. The courtyard and main administrative wing came later, in the 16th century. The whole complex was expanded and raised in the 17th century, and now houses several rooms across two floors — although not all of them are open to the public. Among those you can visit, don’t miss the former Consuls’ Hall, now used for civil weddings. It features a stunning Hispano-Moorish ceiling from the late 1500s, surrounded by a rich 19th-century décor created in anticipation of a visit from Napoleon I — though, in the end, he never showed up. And in the courtyard, framed by elegant arcades, stands The Mediterranean, a sculpture by Aristide Maillol, one of France’s most celebrated sculptors. Inside and out, this is one of the oldest town halls in the country — and it’s full of beautiful details waiting to be discovered.